Sweden’s Armed Forces failed to recruit enough troops in 2017

The Swedish Armed Forces has had trouble attracting recruits since it ended conscription. (Fredrik Sandberg/AFP/Getty Images)

The Swedish Armed Forces continued to struggle attracting recruits in 2017, falling well below its own target of 3,500 troops required for basic training.

Swedish Radio reports that 2,230 recruits began basic training last year.

“The results are not what we wished for. It is of course serious that we did not succeed in filling the training places we need,” said Swedish Armed Forces head of recruitment Anders Åkermark.

He told Radio Sweden that the current economic climate in Sweden has made it difficult to compete with other professions.

The Swedish Armed Forces has had trouble attracting recruits since it ended conscription, but with the government bringing it back, with the first intake undergoing basic training this summer, the Armed Forces hopes to have at least 4,000 people in training in 2018.